The Blue Book of Stories by M. L. Brittain

The Blue Book of Stories for Character Training Compiled and edited by M. L. Brittain, State Superintendent of Schools in Atlanta, Georgia, and published in 1915, this volume collects didactic narratives organized by moral principle for use in school instruction. The work draws from established sources including Aesop's Fables, Orison Swett Marden's Inspirational Series, and classic readers. The contents consist of five sections: Civic Virtues (honesty, obedience, trustworthiness); Positive Virtues to Be Admired (from ambition and bravery to perseverance and self-sacrifice); Negative Faults to Be Shunned (conceit, envy, cruelty); General themes (duty, education, habit); and Special Days (Arbor Day, Memorial Day, Washington's Birthday). Each lesson pairs a moral concept with an illustrative story, song, or scripture passage. Sample narratives include "The Duke and the Boy" (honesty), wherein a Scottish nobleman rewards a servant boy's integrity; "The Courageous Boy" (obedience), depicting a farm hand refusing bribes to maintain duty; and classical tales such as "Damon and Pythias" (friendship). The preface emphasizes character formation as essential to moral education alongside intellectual development.